September for me is the Business New Year!  With the end of our fiscal year a week away, it’s time to make some resolutions that will not only keep my business on track but it will reaffirm our culture and create change that will continue to help my business evolve and shun complacency.

We start every fiscal year off with a ‘meeting of the minds’, where our team sits down to discuss the strategies of the year to come, to set the goals (large and small) to get us there and to divvy out the tasks.  Before we can go there, as the company’s leader, I have some resolutions of my own that will help me help my team to get us where we want to go.  Here are some of the things I think about before going into our annual business plan.

1. Human Resources

Who’s presently on the team and who do we need to propel ourselves forward.  What positions do we need to hire for (or create) to keep up to the demand.  And who needs more hands in their position.

2. Review the Pluses of Working with Plan A

Is Plan A really a great place to work (I think so!)?  Does each team member truly like their job?  This gives me a chance to make sure that the team sees the benefits in working for our organization and also to see if there are other things we can do to keep people inspired and motivated.

3. Marketing

Each year my goal is to upgrade our marketing efforts.  This is the perfect time to take stock of the previous year and get ready to set some goals for this year.  This year I want to invest a little more time and money into marketing and checking in before the Strat plan makes sure I have an idea of what our budget is and where we want to take this business!

4. Get connected

To me, the end of summer is also the beginning of the networking season.  I like to make a list of people I want to reconnect with or meet for the first time, as well as the upcoming events and networking opportunities that present themselves.  I like to keep myself and my team engaged by attending events that are aligned with what we do.

5. Expanding my Business

I know we’re going to expand but how and where and with who?  I need a clear picture of where we’re going before we sit down and plan so our team can help me figure out how we’re going to get there.

Business New Year is one of my most favourite times of the year.  I love everything about my businesses: the solutions they bring to LTC, the people I’ve inspired to bring the vision to life and the community I’ve chosen to build in.  Each year promises to be more exciting and this year is no different!  One of my favourite quotes is “failing to plan is planning to fail”.  Stay posted to find out where our plans take us in 2016/2017!